Barry arrived at Sydney’s hotel suite maybe an hour or so after they had left, just as Nigel had predicted, with flowers in hand and an invitation to dinner and a show. He knew she and her assistant, if that’s what she insisted on calling him, had no plans that evening, and even Sydney herself mentioned retiring early. He knocked on her door and waited, getting no answer. He tried Nigel’s room only to be greeted by the same silence. Starting to worry and with no other recourse, he hurried back down to the front desk to see if they had any information on her whereabouts. With both of them nowhere to be found, he had a sinking feeling as to where they just might be.
"Excuse me, have you seen Professor Sydney Fox this evening?" He politely asked, his eyes desperately scanning the lobby for her just in case.
The desk clerk glanced up from his computer and smiled his usual phoney grin, usually reserved for the patrons. "Yes sir, she left about an hour ago. May I give her a message for you?"
"No, uh, was she alone?"
"No sir," he paused and half laughed, "actually it was kind of funny. Both she and her associate left here dressed all in black, like they were on their way to a train robbery. She was carrying a shovel!"
"Damn that woman!" He slammed his fist down on the desk hard. He knew exactly where she was, and if she thought she was going to do this without him she was sadly mistaken! This was his project, not the Sydney Fox and Goofy sidekick show! Selfish, wilful American woman!
"Quick, help me get this out of here!" Sydney hurriedly started to claw lumps of clay and gravel out from around a long, iron casing and with Nigel’s aid, they gently lifted it from its resting place. The brass clasps were still there, but curiously were not locked into their fittings. Sydney lifted her hopeful eyes to Nigel’s, familiar old thrills coursing through her veins. This was it...the payoff. She wasn’t breathing, she knew she wasn’t until he’d snapped the clasps away and cautiously raised the lid.
"Hey...wait a minute Syd." Nigel was suddenly taken from the matter at hand, becoming acutely aware of the sudden lack of movement in the air around them. From the moment he opened the box all winds just died... No leaves were rustling, grass swishing, or howling wind could be heard. Just stillness all over. "Amazing..." Sydney looked up, feeling the air grow quiet in a matter of seconds.
"That bothers me." An unsettled feeling washed over her and she forced her attention back to the contents of the box. Picking aside the tattered red velvet material Sydney’s eyes grew wide. Reaching in she curled her fingers around the staff and freed it. "Awesome..."
It was about five feet in length, from its sharp iron tip to the butt end. It had a jagged edged blade, making it impossible to pull it from the victim’s body without serious damage, and the most beautiful carvings trailing delicately from mid stave to the top. It was almost possible to see it as more than just a killing tool. It was an exquisite work of art.
"That looks painful." Nigel observed, and reached out his hand to touch the tip of the blade.
"It was an excruciating way to die Nigel." Sydney demonstrated by gently jabbing it between his ribs, just enough to make him squirm. "You see the gladiator would have had to thrust hard in a jabbing motion at her intended, and the killing move would come with retracting the spear. Look at the tines, see how they run opposite of the tip?" She ran her fingers along the spines of the weapon and glanced up, seeing how utterly appalled he’d become. "Once you push it deep into the flesh, it was anchored by these sharp picks, and by pulling out you could rip the flesh to shreds, effectively gutting your opponent. Spear and gladiator combined made an incredibly efficient killing machine. The victim bled out with minutes."
"Delightful..." Nigel woefully added.
"I’ll say! Let’s get this back to the hotel, I think we’ve already stayed longer than we should have." Sydney packed the spear back inside its forged metal box and tucked it under her arm. "Come on."
Go to Part Ten.